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Fernando Alonso says Aston Martin will have to wait for upgrades around the summer break to get a performance step forward, after he felt the team showed better pace at the Canadian Grand Prix. Alonso said: "We seemed to be faster here than we were in Miami with the same package. We need to wait for performance to come with our upgrades around the summer break, but we will look to keep optimising this package until then."
Laurent Mekies says it is his understanding that Gianpiero Lambiase is joining McLaren with the aim of becoming team principal, despite McLaren announcing he will take up the chief racing officer role when he arrives in 2028 after leaving Red Bull. Mekies said: "Look, it's certainly my understanding that GP is going to McLaren to become a team principal. That's what I told you at the time. Obviously, we had a number of conversations before he was going to make the decision. Now don't ask me if it's going to happen, the timing of it is none of my business. I can just tell you the content of our conversations."
George Russell says he would like to compete in the NĂźrburgring 24 Hours one day after watching Max Verstappen take part in this yearâs race, but added Verstappen is in a different position because Russell is still chasing his first Formula 1 world title. Russell said: "All of us are in a slightly different position to Max. Obviously, we're also pursuing to win a world championship, but obviously, he's in a luxurious position to do what he enjoys. And yeah, that's great for him. And he did a great job."
Max Verstappen says he is not willing to do a full rally test despite an invitation from nine-time World Rally champion Sebastien Ogier, because he sees rallying as âtoo high a riskâ. Verstappen said: "I think it's really cool. But I just think about if I make a mistake and I hit that tree, the tree is not moving, and that for me is my limit. That, for me, is something that I don't want to do. It's too high a risk. It's a bit different, in my head at least, and it's just a risk that I'm not willing to take."
The FIA will require a Monaco-specific engine mode at the Monaco Grand Prix to limit straightline speed on the street circuit, where the 2026 cars can harvest energy easily and would otherwise carry too much deployment for the layout. In the mandated âRev 1â setting, MGU-K deployment must start tapering from its 350kW limit at 200km/h instead of 290km/h in the standard âBaseâ mode, and cars will have no battery deployment left once they reach 300km/h; overtake mode still applies, but only leaves 150kW at 300km/h before dropping to zero by 310km/h. The restriction sits alongside Monaco having no straight-mode activation zones, with the FIAâs aim being to reduce the safety risk of cars arriving at corner entries too quickly.
David Croft said there is a push from the Saudi side to restore the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix to the 2026 calendar in the gap between Azerbaijan and Singapore on October 2-4, which would create a new triple-header, although Bahrain is also understood to be under consideration and any decision remains dependent on the situation in the Middle East after both races were cancelled in April. Croft said after speaking to someone âclosely associatedâ with the Jeddah event in Montreal: âThere is a desire to have that race in Jeddah run this year, potentially between Baku and Singapore. There is that weekâs gap, so we could turn it into a triple-header... Bahrain might be an option for that one as well, depending on what the situation is in that part of the world.â
Lewis Hamilton says he will probably not use Ferrariâs simulator to prepare for races because he feels it carries âtoo many risksâ, although he would consider using it to help the team correlate the simulator with what he feels in the real car. Hamilton said: "The simulator, I mean, I'm sure I would drive it at some point. I think what could be good is, for example, going back and doing a correlation to this weekend so we can find out where it's missing. Now, whether or not I use it to prepare for another race? Probably not. There are just too many risks. It's a tool that can be powerful. But for me, I'm old school. I'm probably better without it."
Lewis Hamilton says Ferrari is âmassively downâ on power compared to Mercedes and that it is stopping the team fighting them during the 2026 Formula 1 season, after finishing second at the Canadian Grand Prix. Hamilton said: "If you take away the power deficit, we're in the fight with these guys. But unfortunately that's not the way it is today. Even when you get the overtake [mode], when you get within a second, they still pull away. So that's how much grunt that they have, and we're massively down. But I really hope with this new rule that enables us to try to improve some performance, so we can get back in the fight with them."
Red Bull boss Laurent Mekies says he is optimistic Formula 1âs manufacturers will agree on power-unit changes aimed at improving racing, as the FIA pushes for a different split between engine and electrical power from 2027. Mekies said: "I'm optimistic we'll find the right solutions. So, I'm optimistic we'll find a majority of people agreeing on improving the race. Because when it comes to what matters for the sport, I think at some stage we will all put on the side what we feel it may or may not do to our relative competitiveness to do a step in the right direction for the sport. I think ultimately we'll get to that point."
Max Verstappen says he would love to race the Daytona 24 Hours and that the idea of doing the event in 2027 is being explored. Verstappen said: "It is an idea at the moment, but not concrete yet. If I wanted to do that, I will have to adjust my entire training programme to it, and I will also have to discuss it with my family. But I would love to do it. And then again in a GT3 car, I think, not in the fastest GTP class."
Cadillac team principal Graeme Lowdon said the team made âreal progressâ at the Canadian Grand Prix weekend, despite Sergio Perezâs race ending with a front suspension failure. Lowdon said: "There is real progress. In terms of race pace, accuracy of upgrade predictions, all these kinds of things that aren't seen. Clearly the objective is to try and bring all the elements together and get meaningful progress on the track. We just saw some real steps forward, both in the Sprint race and also today."
Max Verstappen says it would be ânice and logicalâ for Formula 1âs calendar to accommodate another NĂźrburgring 24 Hours attempt, after he and his team dropped to 38th following a driveshaft failure on their debut at the race. Verstappen said: "It would have been nice if we had won that race straight away, because the chance was very big. Not power [over the calendar], but I think it would be nice and logical if that were possible."
Stefano Domenicali says Formula 1 has a contingency plan and âother alternativesâ if it is forced to cancel the final two races of the 2026 season in Qatar and Abu Dhabi because of the ongoing conflict in the Middle East. Domenicali said: "I can confirm that we have a contingency plan. And if the two end-of-year races cannot take place because the war is not over, we will have other alternatives."
Martin Brundle says Kimi Antonelli was âluckyâ to have the âwisdomâ of Mercedes race engineer Peter âBonoâ Bonnington and team boss Toto Wolff during the Canadian Grand Prix sprint, after the 19-year-oldâs frustrations with team-mate George Russell spilled onto the radio. Brundle said: "Kimi lost his head a bit for the duration of the Sprint such that the headmaster Toto Wolff even intervened on the radio. Kimi is lucky to have the wisdom of Bono and Toto at these moments, the rest of us would have just gone straight to the scene of the contact or accident, and recriminations post race."
Oscar Piastri spent part of this week at the Isle of Man TT with manager Mark Webber after the Canadian Grand Prix, watching trackside during the eventâs practice and qualifying sessions after this yearâs TT began on Monday. Piastri said he was caught off guard by what he saw, saying: "I don't know what I was expecting, but this wasn't it" and later adding: "These guys are nuts," before also saying it "won't be the last" time he visits.
Sergio Perez says he is happy with his level of driving in his first five races back in Formula 1 with Cadillac and feels he has proved to himself he is âone of the best out thereâ. Perez said: "I'm very happy with my performances, with my level of driving. I'm happy I came back and prove it to myself that I'm one of the best out there."
Mercedes boss Toto Wolff says he would support changing Formula 1âs planned 2027 power-unit split to 60:40 in favour of the internal combustion engine, rather than the current 50:50 balance. Wolff said: "Obviously, the Montreal track layout helps in terms of energy, but I think the changes that we have anticipated, all of us, in adding more power and helping the energy deployment, these are good changes. They mean a compromise from each of the engine manufacturers, but it looks like a sensible approach, but we haven't voted on them."
Lewis Hamilton says Formula 1âs 2026 power units still feel âweirdâ because the power can drop away halfway down the straight, even though he feels the new cars have improved the ability to race closely. Hamilton said: "Itâs definitely not second nature, thatâs for sure. I think it still continues to be a weird feeling. You go down the power, you open up the SM, and then the power dies like halfway down the straight and the RPM starts dropping. It doesnât feel what motorsport should be... Thatâs what they used to do in the V8 times or the V10 times... I think ultimately the car is fundamentally a better design... The power part, I think, is less exciting."
McLaren CEO Zak Brown says he is excited by the teamâs work with partners Deloitte and Google to build a fully âcircularâ Formula 1 car as part of its push to cut waste and environmental impact. Brown said: "As our sport continues to see incredible growth around the world, it is all the more important that we work hard to reduce our overall impact on the planet and the pressures on global resources, and collaboration and great partnerships are essential to us achieving that. Equally, I'm excited by the work we're doing with Deloitte and Google to continue our mission to build a fully circular F1 car."
Max Verstappen says the Canadian Grand Prix was his first ânormalâ race of the season, with ânothing crazyâ happening to him after a difficult start to the campaign. Verstappen said: "The last few laps, I tried to get back, but it was good. We're pushing flat out, and [it] was just very nice for me. Also, I think it's my first race where I basically had a normal race, nothing crazy happened, so that's also nice."
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